SCHOTT can look back on a successful fiscal year 2017/2018 (October 1, 2017, to September 30, 2018). All key financial figures continued to develop positively or remained at the good level of the previous year. Important impetus was also provided to achieve future growth.

Record net profit of EUR 208 million was achieved. At EUR 274 million, EBIT was at the good level of the previous year. SCHOTT achieved a return on sales of 13%. “We are very satisfied with the past fiscal year. Despite unfavorable currency influences, we achieved the targets we had set ourselves, especially in terms of profitability,” emphasized Dr. Frank Heinricht, Chairman of the Board of Management, at the annual results press conference.

Sales growth was 6.3% adjusted for the strong currency effects. The main growth drivers were syringes made of glass and polymer, pharmaceutical glass for pharmaceutical packaging, components made of ZERODUR® glass-ceramic for astronomy and for the lithography of display glass surfaces and CERAN® glass-ceramic cooktop panels. However, the US dollar, Turkish lira and Brazilian real in particular ensured that Group sales of EUR 2.08 billion in nominal terms were only slightly above the previous year’s level. The foreign share of sales remained unchanged at 86%. The number of employees rose to 15,485. Investments in property, plant and equipment amounted to EUR 185 million. More than half was invested in the German sites. The largest foreign investment was the expansion of production capacity for pharmaceutical packaging at the St. Gallen site in Switzerland.

The innovation pipeline at SCHOTT was further expanded. Products with special growth prospects include special glasses for augmented reality applications, chemically hardened display glasses for smartphones, and pharmaceutical glass, which offers producers of pharmaceutical packaging more security with 100-percent inspection.
In the presentation of the results, CFO Dr. Jens Schulte pointed out that equity had again increased. The equity ratio is now 35%. “This means that we have reached a very solid level,” said Dr. Schulte. Seven M&A transactions took place in the past fiscal year. In addition to the increase in shares in companies in the operating business, the focus was on investments in startups in the fields of big data and artificial intelligence.

Outlook for fiscal year 2018/2019: further growth planned

SCHOTT intends to continue its course of sustainable, profitable growth in the current fiscal year. In a stable environment, the company expects Group sales to increase by 3‑6% and earnings to remain at a high level.
Investments in property, plant and equipment are also expected to increase sharply to around EUR 300 million. The focus will be on expanding capacity for polymer syringes at the St. Gallen, Switzerland, and Müllheim, Germany, sites as well as for pharmaceutical glass in an existing plant in India and the construction of a new plant in China. The expansion of the glass-ceramic competence center at the Mainz plant will also be continued in order to satisfy the high demand for ZERODUR® glass-ceramic.

The planned growth will be achieved with both proven and new products. These include optical glasses, innovative pharmaceutical packaging and thin glasses for smartphones. “SCHOTT offers key components for global megatrends such as health care, mobility and energy. Our broad portfolio opens up good prospects for the current fiscal year and beyond,” says CEO Dr. Heinricht.

SCHOTT is a leading international technology group in the areas of specialty glass and glass-ceramics. The company has more than 130 years of outstanding development, materials and technology expertise and offers a broad portfolio of high-quality products and intelligent solutions. SCHOTT is an innovative enabler for many industries, including the home appliance, pharma, electronics, optics, life sciences, automotive and aviation industries. SCHOTT strives to play an important part of everyone’s life and is committed to innovation and sustainable success. With more than 15,500 employees at production sites and sales offices in 34 countries, the group has a global presence. In the 2017/2018 fiscal year, SCHOTT generated sales of 2.08 billion euros. The parent company, SCHOTT AG, has its headquarters in Mainz (Germany) and is solely owned by the Carl Zeiss Foundation. This is one of the oldest private and one of the largest science-promoting foundations in Germany. As a foundation company, SCHOTT assumes special responsibility for its employees, society and the environment.